Separable lamp socket

ABSTRACT

A SEPARABLE SOCKET AND LAMP SHIELD FOR BAYONET TYPE BULBS OR THE LIKE INCLUDING A PAIR OF SEPARABLE ELEMENTS, ONE ELEMENT CONTAINING SPRING BIASED ELECTRICAL TERMINALS AND THE SECOND ELEMENT BEING ADAPTED TO SLIDABLY RECEIVE AND RETAIN THE BAYONET BULB WHEREIN THE SECOND ELEMENT ACTS AS A SHIELD TO PREVENT DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE BULB AND AS A HANDLE TO FACILITATE CONNECTION OF THE SEPARABLE ELEMENTS AGAINST THE BIAS OF THE ELECTRICAL TERMINALS.

Jan. 12, 1971 J BRlCKLE EI'AL 3,555,48

SEPARABLE LAMP SOCKET Filed Sept. 17, 1968 INVENTORS DONALD J. BRICKLE JAMES A. BURLING ATTORNEY United States Patent l 3,555,489 SEPARABLE LAMP SOCKET Donald J. Brickle, Pittsford, and James A. Burling, Rochester, N.Y., assignors to Sybron Corporation, a corporation of New York Filed Sept. 17, 1968, Ser. No. 7 60,205 Int. Cl. H01r 13/54 US. Cl. 339-88 6 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A separable socket and lamp shield for bayonet type bulbs or the like including a pair of separable elements, one element containing spring biased electrical terminals and the second element being adapted to slidably receive and retain the bayonet bulb wherein the second element acts as a shield to prevent direct contact with the bulb and as a handle to facilitate connection of the separable elements against the bias of the electrical terminals.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to a socket and shield for bayonet type bulbs or the like which facilitates removal or replacement of such bulbs, more specifically the invention relates to a separable socket for bayonet type bulbs which eliminates the need for handling the bulb when it is inserted or removed from the socket.

Bayonet type bulbs are well known in the art as this term is used to describe any type of bulb which is provided with a pair of lugs which fit into corresponding lug receiving slots formed in the socket, wherein the bulb is inserted into the socket and then twisted to seat the lugs in the lug receiving slots of the socket.

In such a bulb and socket arrangement it is diflicult if not impossible to replace burned out bulbs immediately after they fail because of the necessity to grasp and twist the hot bulb to remove it from the socket. The danger of burn or injury is especially present where a bulb of high intensity is used such as the quartz or iodine lamps used in medical and dental examination lights. Moreover, when a bayonet bulb is being twisted to insert or remove the bulb from the socket, there is also a considerable danger of breaking the glass portion of the bulb if for some reason the metal portion and lugs of the bulb become locked in the socket. Breaking the glass portion of the bulb not only poses the threat of injury as the glass fails but also presents a problem of removing the metal portion of the bulb from within the socket.

Furthermore, since the lugs of the bulb are greater in diameter than the glass portion of the bulb, it is difiicult when grasping the bulb portion by hand to apply sufiicient torque to unlock the lugs from the receiving slots of the socket. This is especially true as stated hereinabove where the bulb is hot or where the bulb has been damaged so that there is a danger of the glass portion separating from the metal portion of the bulb as the bulb is twisted.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention is characterized in one aspect, thereof, by the provision of a separable socket assembly having a fixed element which carries spring loaded electrical contacts, and a removable element, which slidably receives the bayonet bulb through one end of the removable element. The removable element is mated to the fixed element against the spring bias to connect the terminals of the bulb to the electrical contact of the fixed element. A hot burned bulb can be removed from the socket by grasping and turning the removable element to separate the socket elements and then inverting the reice movable element to permit the bulb to fall therefrom by gravity.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION One object of the present invention is to provide a socket for bayonet-type bulbs which facilitates the insertion and removal of such bulbs from the socket.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a socket for bayonet type bulbs which eliminates the need for grasping the bulb by hand when the bulb is being inserted or removed from the socket.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a two-part socket for bayonet-type bulbs wherein the socket portions can be separated for purposes of replacing a burned out bulb without touching the bulb by hand.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a view of the separable socket of the present invention just prior to assembly, the socket being partly broken away and in cross section to show internal components; and

FIG. 2 is an end view of a portion of the separable socket.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1 shows a separable socket of our invention generally designated at 10 to include a fixed socket element 12, and a separable element or bulb housing 14. Housing 14 is formed by a tubular wall 16, having a first section 18 and an enlarged section 20 joined at shoulder 22. A pair of diametrically opposed openings 24 are formed in the housing at shoulder 22 for receiving the lugs 26 of a bayonet-type bulb 28. In this respect, bayonet bulb 28 is slidably inserted into housing section 18 through the enlarged section 20, the passage of bulb 28 completely through the housing being prevented by the lugs which extend through openings 24 to engage the tubular wall 16 of section 18-.

Extending axially inwardly from one end 30 of bulb housing 14 is a pair of diametrically opposed, generally L-shaped slots 32, the slots being adapted to receive corresponding lugs 34 carried by socket 12 to latch bulb housing 14 and fixed socket element 12 together.

Bulb housing 14 is also provided with a bulb shield comprising a cap member 36 and a plurality of fin-shaped supporting arms 38 which connect the cap to housing section 18. The cap and supporting arms together provide a cage about the bayonet bulb 28 which prevents accidental body contact with a hot bulb. Cap 36 also provides a mechanical advantage means for removing a hot burned out bulb from the socket without touching the bulb by hand.

As shown in FIG. 1, socket element 12 is fixed by any suitable means to a paraboic reflector or the like indicated at 40 which forms no part of the present invention. Socket element 12 carries the electrical contacts 42 which are mounted on a sliding support 44, the sliding support being biased against the base of socket 12 and towards bulb housing 14 by spring members 46. Slots 48 formed in the wall of the fixed socket element act as guides for the movement of sliding support 44 and one end 50 of the slots acts as a stop to retain the sliding support within socket 12. An outer socket member 52 is disposed about fixed socket element 12 and acts as a guide to facilitate assembly of bulb housing 14 and socket 12. The numeral 54 represents the lead-in wires which connect electrical contacts 42 to a source of electricity not shown.

OPERATION In operation the separable socket and bulb shield of the present invention can be assembled or disassembled to change bulbs without touching a hot burned out bulb. In this respect, a new bulb is inserted into bulb housing 14 by dropping the bulb through the enlarged section 20 to seat bulb lugs 26 in openings 24. Bulb housing 14 is then held by cap 36 and inserted into the outer socket member 52 and over socket 12 so that the socket lugs 34 are received into the L-shaped slots 32. Cap 36 is then rotated to seat lugs 34 in the slots, locking the bulb housing and socket element together. As bulb housing 14 is inserted over socket 12, bulb 28 engages electrical contacts 40, and moves sliding support 44 against the spring bias. The compression of springs 46 not only insure the engagement of the electrical contacts to the bulb but also act to firmly seat bulb lugs 26, Which extend through openings 24, against the tubular wall 16 to fix bulb 28 Within bulb housing 14.

When a bulb has burned out and requires replacement, cap 36 is merely turned by hand to unseat lugs 34 from the L-shaped slots 32 so that bulb housing 14 and fixed socket element 12 can be separated. With bulb housing 14 separated from socket element 12, the housing can be inverted to permit the bulb 28 to slide by gravity from housing 14 through housing end 30.

It should be noted that cap member 36, being larger in diameter than lugs 34, provides a mechanical advantage to facilitate the assembly or disassembly of the bulb housing from socket element 12.

Thus, it would be appreciated that the present invention accomplishes its intentive objects providing a bulb socket for bayonet type bulbs and the like which facilitates the insertion and removal of such bulbs from a socket. In this respect, the construction of bulb housing 14 provides an operator with increased mechanical advantage with which to separate the housing 14 'from socket 12 as set forth hereinabove. Bulb housing 14 also eliminates the need for applying a connecting torque directly to the bulb which in turn eliminates the danger of the glass body portion of the bulb breaking and becoming separated from the metal casing portion as the bulb is inserted or removed from the socket. Furthermore, the cage provided by cap member 36 and fins 38 act to shield the bulb which prevents both damage to the bulb and accidental body contact with a hot bulb.

Having thus described our invention in detail, what we claim as new is:

1. A separable bulb socket for high intensity bulbs and the like comprising:

(a) a fixed socket element;

(b) means carried by said fixed socket element including electrical contacts to connect said bulb to an electrical source;

(c) a housing retaining said bulb and releasably connected to said fixed socket element, said housing including axially aligned tubular sections, one of said sections being larger in diameter than another of said sections to permit said bulb to pass through said section of larger diameter and into said section of smaller diameter;

(d) stop means on said housing preventing the passage of said bulb through said tubular section of smaller diameter and;

(e) latching means on said section of larger diameter for engaging said fixed socket element to latch said socket element and housing together and urge said bulb against said electrical contacts.

2. A separable socket as in claim 1 wherein said bulb is a bayonet type bulb, the juncture of said tubular sections forming a shoulder and said housing having a pair of diametrically opposed openings through the tubular Wall thereof at said shoulder to receive the lugs of said bayonet bulb, the engagement of said lugs through said openings with the wall of said tubular section of smaller diameter comprising said stop means.

3. A separable socket as in claim 1 wherein said latching means comprises:

(a) at least one lug carried by said fixed socket element; and

(b) a generally L-shaped lug receiving slot extending inwardly from one end of said section of larger diameter, said housing being inserted over said fixed socket element and rotated to seat said lug in said L-shaped slot.

4. A separable socket as in claim 1 wherein said housing further comprises:

(a) a plurality of fin-shaped elements attached to and extending radially and axially from said tubular section of smaller diameter; and

(b) mechanical advantage means carried by said finshaped elements facilitating the connection of said housing to said fixed socket element.

5. A separable socket as in claim 4 wherein said mechanical advantage means comprises a cap member extending across and supported by said fin-shaped elements, said fin-shaped elements and cap member together form a cage about said bulb.

6. A socket for bayonet-type bulbs and the like comprising:

(a) a fixed socket element including electrical contacts for connecting said bulb to an electrical source;

(b) a tubular, open ended housing slidably receiving said bulb therein with a portion of said bulb extending outwardly through one end of said housing said housing having a pair of diametrically opposed axially extending slots opening through a second end of said housing, the width of said slots being sufiicient to accommodate the lugs of said bayonet type bulb and the ends of said slots engaging the lugs of said bulb to prevent said bulb from sliding through said hous ing; and

(c) latch means on said second end of said housing for releasibly engaging said fixed socket element to latch said socket element and housing together.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,862,197 6/1932 Pagendarm 339188 2,398,626 4/1946 Del Camp 339-93 2,951,108 8/1960 Woods 174'-35 .5

MARVIN A. CHAMPION, Primary Examiner I. H. McGLYNN, Assistant Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 339-153 

